Other Local category, Page 76
Norwin grad Matijevic assigned to Double-A
JJ Matijevic will start his third season in the minor leagues in Double-A. The former Norwin and Arizona star was assigned to the Corpus Christi Hooks of the Texas League, an affiliate of the Houston Astros. The 6-foot, 206-pounder who bats left-handed and throws right-handed, finished last season with the...
Chartiers Valley grad Annie Katonka helps Plattsburgh State claim national title
There are few words that can describe this past season for Annie Katonka. The Chartiers Valley grad helped lead the Plattsburgh State women’s hockey team to the NCAA Division III title. The Cardinals topped Hamline, 4-0, in the championship game March 16. “It is an awesome feeling when you work...
Western Pennsylvania sites announced for Drive, Chip & Putt
The Western Pennsylvania Golf Association announced local qualifiers for the 2020 Drive, Chip and Putt competition that culminates in a year at Augusta National Golf Club. Registration is underway. Local qualifying sites include: Willowbrook Country Club, Allegheny Township — June 12 Green Oaks Country Club, Verona — June 13 JC...
Hempfield product Harrell to play in national 3-on-3 tournament
Now that his college career is over, Kason Harrell has every intention of playing professional basketball. The wheres and whens have yet to be worked out, but the Purdue Fort Wayne senior knows he’ll be playing against some of the country’s best players in the interim. Harrell, a Hempfield graduate,...
Fundraiser started for wrestler who lost father during NCAAs in Pittsburgh
Steve Sprague watched his son, Michael, wrestle his final college match Friday in Pittsburgh. About 30 minutes after the match ended, Steve Sprague suffered “a cardiac event” and died. Now friends are trying to raise money for the grief-stricken family with a GoFundMe page. Michael Sprague is a senior 149-pound...
Penn-Trafford grad Dan Obremski starts well in PGA LatinoAmerica event
Penn-Trafford graduate Dan Obremski finished strong in his first PGA Tour LatinoAmerica event Sunday. The Irwin native shot 3-under-par 69 during the final round of Buenaventura Classic in Rio Hato, Panama and finished the four-round event at 2-under 286, which tied him for 16th. Juan Alvarez won the event by...
Franklin Regional’s Spencer Lee, Penn State win gold at NCAA wrestling championships
Jason Nolf cracked a bit of a joke upon taking the podium after winning his latest NCAA championship. Asked how it felt to become a three-time national champion, the Kittanning graduate immediately responded: “Not as good as a four-time national champ, but I’ll take it.” In a sense, Nolf became...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: NCAA wrestling championships lived up to the hype
The NCAA wrestling championships came with a warning: You’ve never seen anything like it. Wrestling fans filled PPG Paints Arena over a three-day span to watch a pair of Western Pennsylvania products win individual championships and Penn State win its fourth consecutive national title and eighth in nine years. The...
Lee shines again, captures second NCAA title
Iowa sophomore Spencer Lee calls himself a Pokemon nerd. His Iowa teammates call him the baddest man on the planet. You can just call the 2017 Franklin Regional graduate a two-time NCAA Division I champion. With many of his friends and coaches among the throng of hometown fans in attendance,...
NCAA Wrestling finals: Penn State’s Cassar, Nolf, Nickal, Franklin Regional’s Lee win titles
After clinching the team championship earlier in the day, Penn State wrestlers won three national titles Saturday night during the final round of the NCAA Wrestling Championships at PPG Paints Arena. Heavyweight Anthony Cassar and Kittanning’s Jason Nolf at 157 pounds won titles while teammates Vincenzo Joseph (165) and Mark...
Pletcher, Shields, Zavatsky settle on being All-Americans again
The 330 wrestlers who came to Pittsburgh for the 2019 NCAA Division I wrestling championship this weekend weren’t just looking to become All-Americans. They wanted to be national champions. But only 10 wrestlers could claim national-champ status once the tournament ended Saturday, and another 70 joined them as All-Americans. While...
Penn State clinches 8th NCAA wrestling title in 9 years
The suspense of which team was going to win another NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship title ended early on Saturday at PPG Paints Arena. Penn State claimed its eighth team title in the past nine years during the morning session and ninth in school history. Penn State has five wrestlers...
Vincenzo Joseph tops Josh Shields, on to NCAA finals
There is something about the NCAA wrestling championship that brings out the best in Penn State junior Vincenzo Joseph. The two-time champion punched his ticket to his third final Friday by edging a familiar foe: friend, practice partner from the Young Guns Club and Arizona State junior Josh Shields. Joseph...
Franklin Regional grad Spencer Lee avenges loss to reach NCAA wrestling finals
Spencer Lee knew he couldn’t dwell on a reversal he gave up in the second period of his NCAA wrestling semifinal match with Oklahoma State’s Nick Piccininni. He couldn’t afford to. Similarly, Lee couldn’t wallow in disappointment when Piccininni pinned him earlier this season. The Franklin Regional graduate believed to...
Kevin Gorman: Blood round is difference between All-American and devastationVideo
Micky Phillippi watched his dream dashed one second at a time, a dozen agonizing ticks he couldn’t control. Twelve seconds separated the Pitt wrestler from becoming an All-American. Wrestlers will tell you that theirs is a sport you can’t quite understand unless you have worn the singlet and possess the...
Luke Pletcher edges Micky Phillippi before losing in semifinals
It was a match neither Luke Pletcher nor Micky Phillippi really wanted to wrestle, but they had to. The close friends from Westmoreland County battled in the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship quarterfinals Friday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena for the right to become an All-American and a spot...
5 semifinal bouts to watch Friday night at NCAA Wrestling Championships
With three sessions in the books at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, it’s time to look for the best matchups in Friday’s semifinals at PPG Paints Arena. The session will get underway at 8 p.m. These matches should be electric and have fans on the edge of their seats:...
NCAA Wrestling Day 2: Franklin Regional’s Lee, Kittanning’s Nolf, Central Catholic’s Joseph reach final
With championship berths and All-American status on the line on all six mats, the NCAA Wrestling Championships moved into is fourth session Friday night at PPG Paints Arena. Befitting the spectacle and what was at stake, the NCAA announced the largest crowd of the tournament (18,100) Penn State, which is...
Kevin Gorman: Upsets best part of Day 1 at March MatnessVideo
When you see the dizzying display of wrestling on eight mats covering the floor of PPG Paints Arena, you begin to understand why they call this March Matness. The NCAA wrestling championships are like an eight-ring circus full of takedowns, escapes and falls, of twists and turns and contortionist moves...
Penn State strong on first day; 8 former WPIAL wrestlers advance to NCAA quarters
The first day of the NCAA wrestling championships saw its usual share of dominant wins and eyebrow-raising upsets. And, as is also custom at this time of the year, Penn State ended the night in strong position to win another national title. Although they weren’t immune to the upset bug...
Stakes raised for next Micky Phillippi-Luke Pletcher meeting at NCAA wrestling
Micky Phillippi doesn’t know how many times he’s faced Ohio State junior Luke Pletcher on the wrestling mat. “Counting the practice sessions in high school, it was probably thousands,” said Phillippi, a redshirt freshman at Pitt. But when they two square off at noon Friday in the NCAA Division I...
Five matches to watch in the evening session of Day 1 of the NCAA wrestling championships
With the first session in the books at the NCAA Division I wrestling championships, it’s time to look for the best matchups in Thursday’s second session at PPG Paints Arena. There are going to be some good ones, especially at 133 pounds. (Wrestlers’ seeds are designated before their names.) 5-Luke...
NCAA wrestling Day 1: Pitt’s Micky Phillippi, Nino Bonaccorsi advance to quarterfinals
Pitt redshirt freshmen Nino Bonaccori and Micky Phillippi moved into the quarterfinals of the NCAA Wrestling Championships on Thursday night, both sweating out tight, hard-fought victories in front of crowd of 17,957 at PPG Paints Arena. Phillippi, the No. 3 seed from Derry, defeated Austin Gomez of Iowa State, 1-0,...
Kevin Gorman: Ready to watch NCAA wrestling with wide-eyed wonderVideo
Teague Moore knows the wide-eyed wonder that comes with the tidal wave of energy at the NCAA wrestling championships, one that wrestlers can ride to glory or be crushed under its weight. The American University coach will be flooded by memories this week, with reminders of the overwhelming joy of...
At-large wrestlers can make good on reprieve at NCAAs
Greg Bulsak and Nick Kiussis spent the minutes leading up to 3 p.m. March 12 repeatedly refreshing the NCAA wrestling website on their phones. Sammy Krivus kept himself busy by lifting weights. Ultimately, all three wrestlers received the news they were hoping for the same way: from somebody else. Bulsak,...
